Thursday, May 8, 2008

A WAHABI ' TWIST" on Hadith of Dhikr

The Wahabi Fatwa Factory (WFF) is famous for its Fatwa against Muslims. The Wahabi sect is based on pleasing the enemies of Islam and full filling desires. Everyone is aware of the Wahabi fatwa making Misyar ( TRAVELLER'S MARRIAGE) halal,Inviting Jew Owned Star Bucks Coffee chain in Makkah and other anti islanic steps taken by the Wahabi Kingdom and supported by its puppet scholars.

Wahabis have a natural tendency of calling Sunnah as ' Biddah". So very often we find wahabis telling that Group dhikr is a Biddah ( innovation).

Let us analyze the hadith which Wahabis bring to confuse Muslims, usually our revert brothers and sisters.

Here is the hadith

Amr ibn salmah said: We used to sit in front of Abdullah Ibn Masoud's house before the Fajr prayer, so that when he came out we would go with him to the Masjid. {one day} Abu Moosa al-Ash'aaree came and asked us: 'Did Abu Abdur Rahmaan (i.e. Ibn Masoud) leave yet? ' We answered: 'No.'

So Abu Moosa al-Ash'aaree sat with us waiting for him. When he came out, we all stood up. Abu Moosa told him: "Oh, Abu Abdur Rahmaan! I recently saw something in the Masjid which I deemed to be evil, but all praise is for Allah, I did see anything except good " Ibn Masoud then asked: "then What was it?"

Abu Moosa said: "You will see it if you stay alive. In the Masjid, I saw a group of people sitting in circles waiting for the Salââh. Each circle is led by a person. And every person in these circles carries small stones (pebbles).

The leader of a circle would say: "Say 'Allah-u Akbar' a hundred times" so they would repeat Allah-u Akbar a hundred times; then he says "Say 'Laa ilaaha illallaah', a hundred times" so they would say Laa ilaaha illallaah a hundred times; then he would say: "Say 'Subhaanallah', a hundred times", they will say Subhana Allah a hundred times.

Then Ibn Masoud said: "What did you tell them?"

He said: 'I didn't say anything, I waited to hear your opinion."

Abdullah Ibn Masoud said: "Could you not order them to count their evil deeds, and assured them of getting their rewards."

Then Abdullah Ibn Masoud went ahead and we accompanied him. As he approached one of the circles, he said: "What is this that you are doing?"

They said: "Oh! Abu Abdur Rahmaan, these are pebbles to count the number of times we say Allah-u Akbar, La ilaaha Illallah, and Subhaanallah."

He said: "Count your evil deeds, and I assure you that you are not going to lose anything of your rewards (Hasanat). Woe unto you, people of Muhammad, how quickly you go to destruction! Those are your Prophet's companions available, these are his clothes not worn out yet, and his pots are not broken yet. I swear by Whom my soul is in His Hands that you are either following a religion that is better than the Prophet's religion or you are opening a door of misguidance." They said: "We swear by Allah Almighty, oh, Abu Abdur Rahmaan, that we had no intention other than doing good deeds." He said: "So what? How many people wanted to do good deeds but never got to do them? The Prophet of Allah has told us about people who recited the Qur'ân with no effect on them other than the Qur'ân passing through their throats. [I.e. You are Khawarij]...

Answer

This hadith is a Mawquf hadith , that is , the chain does not go back upto the prophet, but stops at a companion.This report is inauthentic.

Further, its authenticity was questioned by al-Suyuti in al-Hawi (2:31); al-Hifni in Fadl al-Tasbih wal-Tahlil as cited by al-Lacknawi, Sibahat al-Fikr (p. 25 and 42-43).

Further, it is belied by Imam Ahmad's narration in al-Zuhd from Abu Wa'il who said: "Those who claim that `Abd Allah [= Ibn Mas`ud] forbade dhikr [are wrong]: I never sat with him in any gathering except he made dhikr of Allah in it." Cited by al-Munawi in Fayd al-Qadir (1:457), al-Suyuti in Natijat al-Fikr fil-Jahri bil-Dhikr in al-Hawi, al-Nabulusi in Jam` al-Asrar (p. 66), al-Hifni in Fadl al-Tasbih wal- Tahlil as cited in al-Lacknawi, Sibahat al-Fikr (p. 25).

In addition, the Prophetic narrations affirming loud dhikr are sahih and innumerable, and definitely take precedence over a mawquf Companion-report even if we were hypothetically to consider it authentic.

Naysayers mention other pseudo-evidence against loud dhikr, all weak, such as the hadith "The best Dhikr is soft, and the best sustenance is what is sufficient," "One silent du`a is seventy times more superior than one loud du`a," and other da`if and maqtu` reports for which we are supposed to leave Qur'an and Sahih evidence and the understanding of the Imams!

It is also against many authentic (sahih) hadith narrated in both , Bukhari and Muslim on the virtues and benifits of joining Group Dhikr.

Just to mention ;

Ibn.'Abbas reported: Dhikr (mentioning the name of Allah) in a loud voice after peo obligatory prayers was (a common practice) during the lifetime of the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) ; and when I heard that I came to knew that they (the ) had finished the prayer.

(Muslim :: Book 4 : Hadith 1211)

and every Wahabi must read this hadith

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) as saying Allah has mobile (squads) of angels, who have no other work (to attend to but) to follow the assemblies of dhikr and when they find such assemblies in which there is dhikr (of Allah) they sit in them and some of them surround the others with their wings till the space between them and the sky of the world is fully covered, and when they disperse (after the assembly of dhikr is adjourned) they go upward to the heaven and Allah, the Exalted and Glorious, asks them although He is best informed about them: Where have you come from? They say: We come from Thine servants upon the earth who had been glorifying Thee (reciting Subhan Allah), uttering Thine Greatness (saying Allah o-Akbar) and uttering Thine Oneness (La ilaha ill Allah) and praising Thee (uttering al-Hamdu Lillah) and begging of Thee. Be would say: What do they beg of Me? They would say: They beg of Thee the Paradise of Thine. He (God) would say: Have they seen My Paradise? They said: No, our Lord. He would say: (What it would be then) if they were to see Mine Paradise? They (the angels) said: They seek Thine protection. He (the Lord) would say: Against what do they seek protection of Mine? They (the angels) would say: Our Lord, from the Hell-Fire. He (the Lord) would say: Have they seen My Fire? They would say: No. He (the Lord) would say: What it would be if they were to see My Fire? They would say: They beg of Thee forgiveness. He would say: I grant pardon to them, and confer upon them what they ask for and grant them protection against which they seek protection. They (the angels) would again say: Our Lord, there is one amongst them such and such simple servant who happened to pass by (that assembly) and sat there along with them (who had been participating in that assembly). He (the Lord) would say: I also grant him pardon, for they are a people the seat-fellows of whom are in no way unfortunate.

(Book #035, Hadith #6505, Sahih Muslim)

It is clear .. Allah, prophet, the anagels and Muslims like Dhkir of Allah, where as Shaitan and enemies of Allah try to stop muslims from joining Dhikr of Allah.

ALSO NOTE

The narration you mention was discussed by Imam Abd al-Hayy al-Lakhnawi,[1] in his book on the permissibility of loud group dhikr, Sibahat al-Fikr fi?l Jahri bi?l Dhikr.[2] He said, while presenting the evidences for those who hold such dhikr to be impermissible, before proving the contrary:

?This may be answered in several ways:

First, while this narration was mention by a group of fuqaha, it does not have any trace in the books of hadith. Rather, what is authentically established from Ibn Mas`ud (Allah be pleased with him) is the contrary. Imam al-Suyuti (Allah have mercy on him) said in Natijat al-Fikr [his work on the permissibility of group dhikr out loud], ?This narration from Ibn Mas`ud (Allah be pleased with him) needs exposition in terms of its chain of narrations and who of the hadith masters transmitted it in their works, and I have seen evidence that would disprove its being established from Ibn Mas`ud. Ahmad ibn Hanbal transmitted in his Kitab al-Zuhd, that Husain ibn Muhammad related with his chain from Abu Wa?il that he said, ?Those who think that Abdullah [Ibn Mas`ud] used to prohibit the dhikr! I never sat with Abdullah [Ibn Mas`ud] in a gathering save that he did dhikr in it.??

Second, even if this narration were established, it goes against explicit rigorously authenticated Prophetic hadiths that permit dhikr out loud as long as it is not excessively loud.[3] These hadiths are given precedence [over this narration] when their indication conflicts.

Third, what al-Bazzazi mentioned in his Fatawa.? (Sibahat al-Fikr, 42-43)

What al-Bazzazi[4] said was, ?If he [Ibn Mas`ud] actually removed them from the masjid, it is possible that it was because they believed that it was an act of worship [specifically enjoined], and to teach people that such a belief is a blameworthy innovation.[5] (Sibahat al-Fikr , 27-28)

Among the proofs for the permissibility of group dhikr:

1. What Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Nasa?i, Ibn Majah, and Bayhaqi narrated from Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said,

Allah says, ?I am as My servant thinks of Me, and I am with him when he makes remembrance (dhikr) of Me. If he makes remembrance of Me to himself, I make remembrance of him to Myself. If he makes remembrance of Me in a gathering, I make remembrance of him in a gathering better than it?

Imam al-Jazari (Allah have mercy on him) said in his Miftah al-Hisn al-Hasin,[6] ?This hadiths indicates the permissibility of group dhikr?? Imam al-Suyuti said,[7] ?Group dhikr can only be out loud, so this hadith indicates its permissibility.? After this hadith, Imam Lakhnawi quotes thirty nine other hadiths of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) that indicate the permissibility of group dhikr. (Sibahat al-Fikr 44-58)

Imam Lakhnawi, a Hanafi, then quoted numerous Hanafi authorities, including al-Bazzazi, Abd al-Haqq al-Dahlawi, Khayr al-Din al-Ramli, and others, who said group dhikr is permitted. [This is also the position adopted by al-Tahtawi and Ibn Abidin, the two foremost references for fatwa in the Hanafi school, and there is no consequential disagreement about the permissibility of group dhikr in the Shafi`i school; it is the recorded position of al-Nawawi, Ibn Hajar, al-Subki, Ibn Daqiq, Ibn Abd al-Salam, al-Khalili, and their other imams].

He concluded by stating, ?As for loud dhikr? the hadiths permitting it are numerous, as are the reports [from the Companions and early Muslims], and we did not find a single proof clearly indicating that loud dhikr is impermissible or disliked. The hadith experts, Shafi`i fuqaha and some Hanafi fuqaha[8] also permitted it.?

It should be noted, too, that when it comes to the legal ruling of a particular human act, it is our duty to see what the legal experts of Islam, the fuqaha of the four schools, said about the matter. Any matter that they deemed permitted may not be criticized by the common person or deemed wrong, for they are the inheritors of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace), and they fulfilled the duty of operationalizing the sunnah of the Beloved of Allah.

[1] Imam Lakhnawi died 1306 AH, at the age of 39, after having authored over 120 books, many of with were multiple volume works, and he is considered to have been one of the great mujaddids (renewers) of the 14th Islamic Century.

[2] It is noteworthy that this work was edited by Shaykh Abd al-Fattah Abu Ghudda (Allah have mercy on him), the Hanafi faqih who is widely acknowledged to have been one of the foremost hadith experts of the 20th Century, and whose numerous books and critical editions of classic works are highly esteemed by students and scholars of sacred law across the Muslim world.

[3] Such that it annoys others, or, if in a masjid, distracts those who come to pray.

[4] Imam al-Bazzazi?s Fatawa are a major reference in Hanafi fiqh.

[5] That is, they believed that such group dhikr was specifically enjoined by Allah and His Messenger, which is blameworthy. Rather, the correct understanding is that it falls under the general command to do much dhikr, in any permitted way. Their being people of innovation is, of course, borne out by the final part of the narration itself, as the ?the great majority? of these people fought with the deviant Kharijites against the Companions of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace).

[6] This is one of the most authoritative and most used sources on Prophetic invocations, and has been accepted and commented upon by great scholars of Islam.

[7] Imam al-Suyuti?s words carry great weight, as it is generally agreed that he was a mujtahid. He authored at least 800 works, in virtually every science of Islam.

[8] Including most late authorities in the Hanafi school.

ALSO NOTE

Here are the notices regarding 'Amr ibn Yahya from the various books of Rijal, with their actual wordings lest someone deny it: